Zombie Apocalypse? No Problem. Keep Teleworking.

It’s been several weeks since I’ve been able to write a blog post. I’ve been stuck watching the new season of Walking Dead and reruns of Doomsday Preppers. All of these shows have me thinking. There are plenty of reasons to telework, from decreasing an organization’s real estate footprint to increasing employee retention and satisfaction; however, there’s only one real reason to telework: Zombies. That’s right, I’m talking about the undead. Brain-eaters. Whether they are the result of some monkey rage virus (see 28 Weeks Later) or an evil corporate conspiracy (see Resident Evil), make no mistake, they’re coming and they’re hungry for your gray matter.

Don’t panic, teleworkers are likely to survive all of this. Zombies are likely to feast in places where lots of people congregate. Office cubicles, and more likely, the water cooler in the break room will become death traps. Meanwhile, you’ll be tapping away on your next email as you work from home in your barricaded safe room. You may want to include a webcam or telepresence solution in your sandbag protected home office to keep tabs on your former flesh eating co-workers. (I suggest watching in HD on Cisco’s EX90 to catch all the gory details).

From watching movies I’ve learned that your perimeter will eventually be breached and you will find yourself on the run from a hoard of the undead. I recommend ditching your laptop for a tablet. Although I have yet to get my hands on Microsoft’s new Surface tablet, it might make a great companion. The keyboard cover should allow you to continue working on that PowerPoint presentation as you run in a screaming frenzy down the street. Note, at this point it may be too late to check your company’s BYOD policies.

Lastly, don’t worry if you need to use your tablet as a weapon to make a quick escape (remember to always aim for the head). Hopefully, you remembered to keep your smart phone with you. You can continue collaborating with other survivors. WebEx has a good mobile app that will keep you connected. Remember, the end of civilization doesn’t mean the end of your productivity.